


Ceci n'est pas une girlfriend

by Daxolotl



Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: Bisexual Victoria Chase, Coming Out, F/F, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Lesbian Kate Marsh, Meeting the Parents, Mutual Pining, Religion, Religious Imagery & Symbolism
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-14
Updated: 2019-07-14
Packaged: 2020-06-28 05:59:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,958
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19806160
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Daxolotl/pseuds/Daxolotl
Summary: Kate comes out to her parents. They're supportive. They'reverysupportive.Then she maybe sort of accidentally tells them that she's got a girlfriend.





	Ceci n'est pas une girlfriend

Kate Marsh has a problem.

It's not a problem of bullying, or of drunken, drugged videos, or of a lack of attendance at her bible study group (which actually picked up in the last four months, after October), or of friends, or even of studying.

It's a problem of her being gay.

Or. Wait. That came out wrong. 

(Hah.)

Not a _problem_ with her being gay, per se. It's more of a problem related to her gayness. 

The gayness was actually going pretty great, all things considered. She'd accepted it without too much of a religious crisis (a loving God made her as she should be and made her with a heart full of love, and to fight against her own love would be to deny _His_ love), and she'd come out to her parents, and her parents were being really good about it. They were being incredibly supportive, actually. Better than she could ever have hoped or expected.

But. That was kind of where the problem came in.

They were being a little _too_ supportive.

From: Mom  
K8! Clemence's (u know Clemence, married to Jeremiah?) second daughter, u know Lena, came 2 church the other morning with a new haircut and wearing a plaid shirt. Would u like me 2 give u her number? - Mom  
Received: 10:16 Sunday March 02

I was just @ the bake sale and a girl with nice tattoos and dyed hair like that friend of urs from Facebook bought a dozen scones. – Mom  
Received: 15:02 Wednesday March 05

O I took a picture of her, should I give her ur number if I see her again? U should bring her 4 dinner over spring break! – Mom  
1 Attachment  
Received: 15:04 Wednesday March 05

I gave ur number to Lena at church yesterday, she said she'd text u some time! U should bring her around 4 dinner when ur next home! – Mom  
Received: 11:40 Today

So.

Like she said.

A little _too_ supportive.

But even that, though irritating (and resulting in her getting a few random texts from possibly-queer-or-possibly-very-confused women), wasn't too much of a problem.

From: You  
Mom, please stop giving my phone number to every pretty girl you see!  
Sent: 11:41 Today

From: Mom  
But u DO think they're attractive, tho? That means I'm on the right track! – Mom  
Received: 11:48 Today

From: You  
You should stop giving my phone number to people, because I'm…I'm already seeing someone at Blackwell!  
Sent: 11:52 Today

_That_ was the problem.

She stares, aghast, at the message she just sent.

"Why did I do that." She whispers into the void.

The phone vibrates in her hands, making her jump. Then again. Then again. Mom. Dad. Lynn. Sarah.

She squeaks and throws the phone across the room, into a hamper of her clothes.

No no no no no no. She did _not_ just say that.

She buries her head against the pillow, ignoring the distant buzzing of the phone and groaning. Alice scurries around her pen, concerned, but Kate can't pay attention to that right now.

_Okay. Think, Marsh, think._

This is okay. This is fine. She just needs to be evasive about it, maybe say it's all quiet and private, and then in a few weeks she can just say she and her imaginary girlfriend broke up.

…At which point her mother's attempts to set her up with every eligible bachelorette in the Pacific Northwest would re-intensify. But. You know. She can handle that. It's not too bad, in retrospect. Better than her phone "coNSTANTLY BUZZING" she half-yells towards the hamper. It buzzes again, just to be petulant.

Yeah. Okay. This can be okay. She'll be fine. Just. Pretend she's got a girlfriend for a couple of weeks, then say it didn't work out.

She climbs out of bed, intentionally taking slow breaths to calm herself, and approaches the phone. It seems to have quieted down, mostly. She reaches out, like it might bite her, and yanks it out of the pile of cardigans.

Her fingers trace the unlock (no, Victoria, her unlock pattern _isn't_ a cross, don't be so predictable (and also, that would be completely inappropriate)) and she opens the first texts – the ones from her mother. The rest of her family can wait.

From: Mom  
!!! – Mom  
Received: 11:52 Today

U have a girlfriend! Kate Beverly Marsh, why am I the last to know these things?! – Mom  
Received 11:57 Today

What's her name? Who is she? Do you share any classes? How did u meet? Is she pretty? – Mom  
Received 12:00 Today

U should bring her over 2 the house during spring break! – Mom  
Received: 12:03 Today

I'll stop blowing up ur phone now but I'm so PROUD of u, sweetie!! – Mom  
Received: 12:04 Today

Kate stares at the last two messages.

Proud of her.

Spring Break.

_Home_.

Okay. This was okay. She could still make this be okay. She still had a while before Spring Break, so she and her imaginary girlfriend could 'break up' before then. No problem.

What date was Spring Break, anyway?

She brings up the Blackwell calendar on her phone. Spring Break, March 20th to March 26th. Huh. Okay.

Okay. That was plenty of time for a fake breakup. She had plenty of time. It was only…she checks today's date.

Monday, March 10th.

"Oh, _come on_!!"

_ _ _

Twenty minutes later, she's successfully managed to read through (most) of the flood of texts she's received from family members about her mysterious new art college girlfriend. Most of them were overly nosy. Lynn was nice about it, at least.

But she still has no idea what to do. She can't say she was lying about it, because _wow_ , what sort of sad, self-centred person lies about having a girlfriend and gets her whole family excited? She can't 'break up' today or tomorrow because that's way too soon. And she can't 'break up' after that, because then her family would expect her to be all mopey and sad during Spring Break!

…that last one had its enticing parts.

But no. Mom and Sarah would drag her out to have comfort food or something. She'd end up being the focal point of attention, even if she played things up and tried to act like she wanted to mope. No moping allowed. 

Especially not after October. 

A shudder goes down her spine.

And Lord forbid she try and call off coming home for Spring Break. She had to go back, to show her family she was doing okay and was back to normal now. That October was a blip on her otherwise-sunshiney radar. Thanksgiving and Christmas had been…difficult. So this was her chance. Her chance to be normal. If she cancelled, they'd assume she was doing badly and start worrying about her again, or something. They might even pull her out of Blackwell, citing it having too many difficult memories for her or something. No. She has to go.

She's dug herself into a hole, and she can't exactly see a way out of it.

The door to the room adjacent to hers slams, and loud pop music starts blasting through the walls. Kate groans, putting fluffy earmuffs on and staring at her phone grumpily.

She can't cancel.

She can't break up with her imaginary girlfriend.

Could she say her girlfriend can't make it? That she lives across the country, or something, and has to go somewhere else for Spring Break? Some New York artist's daughter, with rich parents, jet-setting her way back home, or, more likely, to some beach in Ibiza?

Wait. No. If she went to Ibiza, her family would want to know why Kate was going home instead of going with her new rich girlfriend on vacation. She'd be called antisocial, hiding in her shell instead of socialising. 

Unless her girlfriend's allowance is restricted, and she organised the tickets months ago, before she and Kate started dating?

…Is she really considering lying to her whole family about an imaginary New York girlfriend going on a vacation to Ibiza that Kate can't go on? How is this her life right now? What _is_ her life right now?

It's stupid. Her life's stupid right now, that's what it is.

Kate groans again, louder, dropping her phone on her chest and squeezing the earmuffs to try and drown out the noise of Dark Horse. Why did she have to share a wall with Victoria Chase?

…What if she doesn't make up a girlfriend?

There's no way she could _get_ a girlfriend in the next ten days, and even if she did, that's way too soon to meet the parents.

But she…she has plenty of girl friends. Friends who are girls.

She could…maybe, possibly ask one of them for the biggest, most embarrassing favor of her entire adult life.

She wouldn't have to cancel. She wouldn't have to fake a breakup. She wouldn't have to make a fake person with a convincing alibi (while avoiding showing any pictures of her). She'd be able to go home, and bring her new 'girlfriend', and then they could just….'break up' a couple of months later, once Kate is safely ensconced back in Blackwell.

She…can't see any glaring downsides. Other than having to ask one of her girl friends (her friends who are girls) for the favor.

Oh, no, is she seriously considering this?

…The question is, if she even entertained the idea for one single moment (which she's not saying she is), then…who would she ask? 

She'd, hypothetically, need someone convincing. Max would stutter and splutter her way into the truth after five minutes (and asking Max would hit a little too close to home regarding Kate's entire gay realisation, anyway). Chloe would find it funny enough to try, but…she'd probably go over the top. She always has too much fun with any elaborate plans. Stella? No. Alyssa? No, her morbidity would probably come across like Kate was becoming an emo after her brush with suicide or something. 

'Today Kate was wearing a black corset with matching lace around it and a black leather miniskirt, pink fishnets and black combat boots. She was wearing black lipstick, white foundation, black eyeliner and red eyeshadow. She was walking around outside Blackwell. It was snowing and raining so there was no sun, which she was very happy about. The Vortex Club stared at her. She put up her middle finger at them.'

She giggle-snorts. 

No. Definitely not.

But if not them, then…who?

The song streaming through the wall changes to The Monster, and Kate has a horrifying moment of perfect, piercing clarity.

Oh, no.

_ _ _ 

Alright, Kate. Don't rush into anything. You've still got plenty of time. It's fine. No need to panic.

It's been two days.

Two days, and she hasn't been able to think of any better options.

Two days of watching every single girl at Blackwell in a way that verged on creepy, trying to find someone who could conceivably, hypothetically be her fake girlfriend.

Two days of increasingly becoming aware of the fact that there's only one girl she knows who could pull it off.

She looks down at her phone. The last message she sent blinks back up at her, taunting.

From: You  
She's been super-busy with schoolwork this week and I didn't want to swamp her, but I promise I'll ask her today.  
Sent: 15:16 Today

The bell rings on the last class of the day, and she chases (hah) after a blonde pixie cut ahead of her, hoping beyond hope that she'll go right back to her dorm room for once.

She doesn't.

She stops and sits on the steps, with Courtney and Taylor. Because of course she does. Nothing in Kate's life can be easy. It all has to be massively overcomplicated and difficult. (Never mind the fact that she's the current reason for that complexity. She refuses to acknowledge that part.)

Okay. Think, Kate.

How can she separate Victoria from the rest of the Plastics? Mean Girls is a modern classic, and feels oddly apropos, and Kate will defend it to the death. But right now, she needs something to get them apart. Sprinklers? No, that wouldn't work.

Wait.

Duh.

She walks right up, trying her best to look fearless, and stops in front of the trio.

"Hey Kate," Taylor greets her, smiling and shunting to the side to give her room to step past. They've been much nicer to her the past few months, which is…refreshing. She even considers Taylor an almost-friend, and Victoria is…well. She's Victoria. After everything that happened, she'd apologised, a lot. And now they were…Kate doesn't know how to describe them. They were relaxed. Victoria didn't say anything mean, Kate didn't hold a grudge, and they just…talked sometimes. Like actual functional dormmates who live next to each other. 

Not so much Courtney, who just shrugs nonchalantly in greeting.

"Hi Taylor," Kate responds, then focuses her attention on their ringleader. On her target. Wait. No. That sounds weird. "Hi Victoria. I, um. You know that magazine you let me borrow?"

Victoria gives her a blank look.

Kate powers on anyway. "Well, it's still in my room, and I wanted to give it back to you and ask you about something in it. Do you have a few minutes?"

She stares at Victoria, silently imploring her to Catch A Flipping Hint and agree to go with her. Victoria's gaze doesn't waver, her eyes flicking over Kate's face, searching.

After way, way too long of a silence, Victoria smiles. "Oh, of course, cherie! I totally spaced on letting you borrow it. Girls, don't cause too much trouble without me – I'll be right back."

She sounded utterly convincing. Kate feels convinced, and she knows it's a bald-faced lie. 

She's perfect.

Uh.

She's the perfect fake date.

That. Yeah.

Victoria gets to her feet, smoothing down her skirt, and leads the both of them into the dorms. It's only once the door's closed behind them that she speaks again. "Let's talk in my room. Your room has this biblical energy that harshes my vibe."

"Well, it's good to know my crosses are doing their job warding off evil spirits, then," Kate says, conversationally.

Victoria stops walking for a moment, letting out a laugh of disbelief. "Rude!"

Kate just smiles, stepping past Victoria and standing expectantly by her doorway. She's regained some of her footing. A little snark goes a long way when it comes to making herself less terrified of making a complete fool of herself to the girl who was formerly president, CEO and founder of the 'I Hate Kate Marsh' club. They had badges.

Victoria unlocks the door and bumps shoulders with Kate as she passes by, closing the door after them. 

Kate wanders the room, looking around. She's never really been into Victoria's room. They spoke here once, she remembers. A week after she came back. Victoria had wanted to apologise. Well. Beg for forgiveness was more like it. Max had seen the two of them step into the room that day (that girl sees everything, Kate swears), and she'd almost smashed the door down when she heard crying a few minutes later. Kate smiles at the memory, biding her time and embracing the silence before the storm comes knocking.

"Alright, Marsh. Spill. I didn't give you any magazines, so what is it you want to talk about that's so important and so private you had to pull me away from my prime dragging spot?"

And that would be the storm. Knock knock. 

Who's there? 

Hurricane-force winds and flying billboards.

"I need your help."

Right. Solid start.

Victoria crosses her arms, quirking an eyebrow expectantly.

Not _that_ solid, then.

"So, um. Over Christmas break, I kind of…came out to my parents. As…gay."

Victoria's eyes widen minutely, and is that…is that _fear_ in her eyes? "Shit. Did they kick you out? Are they dragging you out of the evil art college? Do you need help keeping your place here without them?"

"No! No, they took it…really well, actually. They're being really supportive. ...Wait, sorry, did you just offer to pay my tuition?"

And Victoria's face settles again, all trace of worry erased from it. "Don't make a big deal over it. Grats on the non-shitty parents."

"The problem is, they were being...a little _too_ supportive about it. They kept pestering me constantly, trying to set me up with every pretty girl they saw…"

"This is sounding like the opposite of a problem so far, but go on."

"…So to try and get them to stop, I kind of…told my mother I have a girlfriend at Blackwell." Rip the bandaid off, Marsh.

Victoria stares.

"And she invited this imaginary girlfriend to our house over Spring Break."

Victoria _stares_.

"And if I don't show up with someone, I'll either have to tell her I lied, or pile on so many lies that it would just…I can't do that."

Victoria, finally, says something. "That is the most pathetic thing I have ever heard. And in this moment, I am so tragically upset that our feud has ended, because six months ago, my knowing this would have made your life hell for the rest of your scholarship."

Kate scowls. Of course this would be Victoria's reaction, why did she even bother? "This is serious!"

"No. It really, really isn't, Kate. And you still haven't said how you need my help! What, you want me to give you a makeover, replace your bible-thumper clothes with something that might actually find you a date to take home for a game of meet-the-family?"

"I want you to go as my fake girlfriend."

Well.

There. 

She said it. 

It's out in the open now. 

For all to see.

'All', in this case, meaning her and Victoria.

"Let me get this straight – no pun intended, if you claim it's a pun I'll punch you." Victoria raises a finger. "You want _me_ to be your fake girlfriend. You want _me_ to meet your parents. And you want _me_ to lie to their faces."

"…Yes?"

"Why? You've got half a dozen girls who'd fall over themselves to help you out. Waif hipster, dropout, baby momma," She counts them off on one hand. "So why are you here, speaking to your former sworn enemy about it?"

Ah. Kate had a feeling Victoria might ask that. She swallows, thinking carefully about the reasons she'd prepared.

"Max and Chloe are too in love with each other for it to ever work, and Chloe would be…dramatic about it. They're also already listed as In A Relationship with each other on Facebook. Alyssa would be a bit too morbid. Stella might work, but she can be a little antagonistic, and Dana…I love Dana, but she's _really_ straight." 

"Painfully fucking straight," Victoria interjects.

"Platonically calling people 'girlfriend' straight. My parents would see right through that." She swallows. "But you? You're good with adults. You always know how to speak with the teachers."

Victoria hums, staring at Kate. Analysing her.

Kate squirms. Alright. Maybe stare somewhere else? It's getting a little much.

"That's not why," Victoria says, smirking. Her voice drops low. "Those were all good points, but they were rehearsed. Why do you _really_ want me to be the one, Katie?"

Kate swallows.

Time for the truth.

"…Because you're the best liar I know."

Victoria's mouth falls open. 

"Wow. I mean, _ouch _. Harsh! But…fair."__

__"I'm sorry! It's not… _really_ meant as an insult. It's just…you're way better at it than anyone else here. Max gets nervous, Chloe starts laughing, and anyone else…I just wouldn't be able to keep the lie going."_ _

__"Okay."_ _

__"But I know it sounded really bad, and really rude, and insulting you when I'm trying to get you to help me isn't…"_ _

__" _Okay_."_ _

__Kate stops._ _

__"I'll do it. Not like I have any other Spring Break plans. A road trip to religious hicksville is better than staying at Blackwell bored out of my mind all vacay."_ _

__Kate beams, stepping over and hugging Victoria. "Thank you! You just saved me from the most awkward trip of my life. Thank you so much. I owe you for this."_ _

__"You really, _really_ owe me for this, Marsh," Victoria says roughly, but returns the hug. It's only a little bit awkward. "Now get out of here. Text me the deets later."_ _

__Kate scurries from the room, shutting the door behind her and slipping back into the safety and sanctuary of her own dorm. Victoria Chase just saved her from a terrible fate. Who would've thought?_ _

___From: You_  
Victoria says she'd love to meet my family, and she doesn't have any other plans for the break. We'll both be there.  
Sent: 15:41 Today 

__Okay._ _

__Now she just needs to survive the actual meal. That'll be easy._ _

___From: Mom_  
She has a name! Can't wait 2 meet her, I want to know all about how u 2 lovebirds met – Mom  
Received: 15:43 Today 

__Or not._ _

___ _ __ _

___From: Victoria_  
Sarah and Lynn are your sisters. Your dad is Richard, and he's a preacher. Your mom is Mary, but she prefers being called Mrs Marsh. I got it, okay? You don't need to keep reminding me  
Received 11:01 Friday 

___From: You_  
Right. Sorry.  
Sent 11:10 Friday 

___From: Victoria_  
UGH stop apologising. If you're meant to be my fake girlfriend you should be able to actually have half a spine. You insulted me the other day. Go back to that  
Received 11:11 Friday 

___From: You_  
You're asking me to insult you?  
Sent 11:15 Friday 

___From: Victoria_  
YAS bitch  
Received 11:16 Friday 

___From: You_  
You worry me.  
Sent 11:16 Friday 

___From: Victoria_  
That's a p good start  
Received 11:17 Friday 

__Do it more  
Received 11:17 Friday_ _

___From: You_  
I'm genuinely concerned for your wellbeing.  
Sent 11:22 Friday 

___From: Victoria_  
LAME  
Received 11:22 Friday 

___From: You_  
"I was eyes to the blind And feet for the lame" – Job 29:15  
Sent 11:24 Friday 

___From: Victoria_  
UGH so preachy  
Received 11:24 Friday 

__Why did fake me ever agree to fake date fake you  
Received 11:24 Friday_ _

___From: You_  
Good taste? :P  
Sent 11:31 Friday 

___From: Victoria_  
I was thinking more 'pity' but whatever helps you sleep at night I guess  
Sent 11:32 Friday 

___ _ __ _

__Victoria Chase is in Kate's room._ _

__It's really unnerving. Things like this just shouldn't happen. It goes against the natural order of things._ _

__And yet, no matter how many times Kate blinks, she's still there. And it's still unnerving._ _

__"So, what's your plan if someone asks us questions? Like, oh, I don't know, 'how did you two meet'?"_ _

__Kate bristles. "I was thinking I'd probably just…keep things simple. We met at school. We share a lot of classes." Her eyes narrow slightly. "You _weren't_ a…mean person, to me, so we got along."_ _

__Victoria snorts. "Then why wouldn't I be on your Facebook friends list? Why wouldn't you have mentioned me while you were telling your parents about Max and Alyssa and all your most favoritest people?"_ _

__Oh. Darn. Victoria…has a point._ _

__"Okay. So we…only started really talking recently, after October. But we just kind of clicked?"_ _

__"Better. Not perfect, but better," she says, and Kate rolls her eyes. Right. Of course the great Victoria has a better idea._ _

__Victoria withdraws a piece of paper from her bag. Unfolds it. Then unfolds it again. Kate's eyes widen. Oh, dear Lord._ _

__"Lucky for you, I like to prepare for every eventuality."_ _

__No kidding._ _

__"The key to a good lie is having the framework below to support it. You don't need to spill too many details, that makes it obvious you're lying. It's like any piece of photography or artwork. If the world beyond the edges of the frame wouldn't make sense, then people who look at it don't find it convincing. Unless you're going for surrealism, which, let's be real, we're not."_ _

__"Other than the surrealism that will be having you in my childhood home, pretending to be my girlfriend," Kate adds._ _

__"Point."_ _

__Victoria spreads the piece of paper on the bed, and Kate joins her in peering down at it. It's…_ _

__It's magnificent._ _

__"You made all this?"_ _

__"No, I got the whole Vortex Club to work on our secret, deeply embarrassing plan of fake dating," Victoria replies, dryly. "Yes, I made it."_ _

__Kate rolls her eyes._ _

__"Stop rolling your eyes and pay attention, _Katie_. This is important."_ _

__It's…actually all pretty elegant._ _

__Victoria didn't give her the time of day until October. Once Kate came back to school, they started talking between their walls late at night. Their whole budding friendship was fragile, and held only through fleeting moments like that – so neither of them added each other on social media (don't mention that unless someone, probably Sarah, asks about it; nosy teenagers)._ _

__After Christmas break, the two of them finally started hanging out more, until finally Victoria summoned the courage to—_ _

__"Nope," Kate says. Nuh uh._ _

__"What?"_ _

__"You did _not_ ask me out first."_ _

__Victoria's mouth falls open. "Whaaaat? Bitch, I invented being overly forward! Of course I asked you out first."_ _

__Wait. "…Did you just call yourself promiscuous?"_ _

__"Whatever, I don't slutshame," Victoria says, sniffing haughtily._ _

__Kate blinks. Once. Twice. "I am living proof that's untrue."_ _

__"You were never a slut, Kate," she responds. Pauses. "…And everything I grafitti'd about Rachel Amber was only ever meant with the utmost respect."_ _

__"…Right."_ _

__"Girl had talent. R.I.P. and all that."_ _

__Kate rolls her eyes, again. She's doing that a lot today._ _

__"Anyway, why didn't I ask you out? It's like, way more likely."_ _

__"It's such a cliché! The popular girl starts hanging out with the shy introvert, and falls for her, and asks her out, and the shy girl never dared to ask? It's boring!"_ _

__"Boring is _good_! Boring means they won't look too deeply!"_ _

__Kate groans in frustration. Why did she have to be so difficult all the time?! "Boring is fine, but cliché sticks out! You wouldn't submit a cliché photograph in a portfolio, even if you wanted to show off your normal, everyday style alongside some of your more exceptional work."_ _

__Ignore the fact that she just called Victoria's work exceptional. Keep rolling._ _

__"We don't have to be a walking cliché all the time. I mean, _you_ might need to be considering your whole…everything, but not all of us feel the need to be a stereotype."_ _

__Victoria freezes._ _

__Oh no. Oh, why did she say that. She covers her mouth. She didn't mean to be so mean._ _

__Her jaw is clenching. Kate gets ready to be yelled at by the full force of an angry Victoria. It's happened before._ _

__Victoria opens her mouth, hands clenched into fists._ _

__"…You're right."_ _

__Wait._ _

__What?_ _

__"I act like a blonde Alpha Attention Whore, all to cover up my own insecurities, and I only stopped being such a bitch when it almost got you _killed_." _ _

__"Victoria, I already forgave you, you don't need to keep—"_ _

__Victoria makes a zipping motion, and Kate stops talking. "So yeah. I'm a cliché. But right now, I'm the cliché you _asked_ to help with your embarrassing family bullshit. You asked an alpha bitch to be your fake girlfriend, so that's the story you're getting."_ _

__Kate's jaw drops._ _

__She was talking about her part in Kate's almost-suicide to try and get her to roll over on the story?_ _

__Absolutely _not_!_ _

__Crippling almost-survivor's guilt or not, that just won't stand._ _

__"I asked you out," Kate counters. "You didn't want to push for anything with the recently-suicidal girl, especially since her attempt was so tied into sexuality."_ _

__She feels a little bad for using that to bolster her argument, but Victoria just did the same thing. It's only fair._ _

__"So even though there was _chemistry_ between us, you didn't push. Because you're a good person. _I_ asked you to my favorite tea place in town, Leaf Erikson," there's a snort from Victoria at the name, and Kate strengthens her voice. "I asked you to my favorite tea place. I made it clear I was asking you out romantically. And you said yes. You were a perfect lady throughout the whole day, and at the end of it, I asked you to kiss me."_ _

__Victoria stares for a few moments. Her eyes flick downwards. Then she scoffs, stepping away. "That's so boring."_ _

__"Oh, but Victoria!" Kate pokes her in the side. "Boring is _good_! It means they won't look too deeply!"_ _

__Victoria's eyes narrow. "You bitch! You set me up!"_ _

__Kate smiles sweetly._ _

__"Uuugh. Fine. You asked me out. But the rest of the plan stays unchanged." Her finger jabs at the piece of paper on the bed._ _

__"No promises," Kate says, and refocuses on their master plan._ _

__Victoria sticks her tongue out at her._ _

___ _ __ _

___From: Victoria_  
What's your favorite color  
Received: 23:36 Sunday 

___From: You_  
Brown. What's yours?  
Sent: 23:42 Sunday 

__And where are you, anyway? It's Sunday and you're not in your dorm.  
Sent: 23:43 Sunday_ _

___From: Victoria_  
Hayden got his hands on some weed. Why brown  
Received: 23:43 Sunday 

___From: You_  
It's the colour of growth. People think that's green, but brown is nurturing. Soil, tree bark, it renews everything. What's yours?  
Sent: 23:46 Sunday 

___From: Victoria_  
Slate  
Received: 23:47 Sunday 

___From: You_  
What's ACTUALLY your favorite color? :P  
Sent: 23:48 Sunday 

___From: Victoria_  
Rude  
Received: 23:48 Sunday 

__…  
Received: 23:55 Sunday_ _

__Fine, it's red  
Received: 23:55 Sunday_ _

__I could say that it's because it's the color of anger or passion or some bullshit like that. But really I just think its pretty and think my lips look fucking great in red lipstick  
Received: 23:56 Sunday_ _

__I'm self-centred like that  
Received: 23:56 Sunday_ _

__You've probably gone to bed. Better than listening to my lame rambling about colors  
Received: 00:00 Monday_ _

__Ugh. Sorry. Goodnight Katie  
Received: 00:01 Monday_ _

___From: You_  
Goodnight, Victoria.  
Sent: 00:09 Monday 

__I like red, too.  
Sent: 00:09 Monday_ _

___ _ __ _

__"My dad's asking when we want to be picked up from Blackwell."_ _

__They're, of all places, outside. In public. Where people can _see_ them._ _

__Honestly, Kate's as horrified about it as Victoria probably is. But it's hard to tell, since Victoria is paying very little attention to her – lounging on the grass outside Blackwell and checking her phone with an ease that must be practised. There's no way anyone could look that naturally relaxed without working on it, right?_ _

__Or, rather, she did look relaxed. Her fingers stop scrolling through her phone and she blinks, looking up at her._ _

__"Picked up?"_ _

__Kate shifts under Victoria's unflinching gaze. She's a flinching gay, if you will._ _

__"Yeah. I mean, we don't exactly live in town. It's a three hour drive there."_ _

__"I'm not spending three hours being driven into the woods by a preacher in a sensible family car," Victoria says, flatly._ _

__"Then…how are you going to get there?"_ _

__Victoria looks at her like she's grown a second head, or told her she believed the world was only six thousand years old. " _We_ are driving. In my car. Did you forget that I had a car?"_ _

__Oh. Right. Kate opens her mouth to disagree, but, in all honesty, she _had_ forgotten that. She's so used to being picked up by her parents, the idea of having someone with a car to drive her is bizarre. A girlfriend (even a fake one) to drive her._ _

__"It's…not something I'm used to." Kate says, in lieu of admitting to forgetting. "Are you sure you don't want him to pick us up? It would let you spend some time with just him before being exposed to…the whole rest of my family."_ _

__Victoria snorts. "The less time I'm isolated with your family members, the better."_ _

__Okay. That's a step too far. Kate tolerates Victoria's occasional jabs at her religion or her upbringing, but insulting her family? No. Nope. Not happening._ _

__"Is there something wrong with my family that you find so disagreeable?" she asks, voice raising slightly._ _

__Her own tone has Victoria snapping back. "Oh, get off your high horse, Marsh, that isn't what I meant and you know it!"_ _

__"No, actually, I don't think I _do_ know it. You're always rude about my faith, always making it abundantly clear how stupid you think it all is. So what _do_ you mean, if not a cheap jab at my family for being as stupid as you think I am?"_ _

__"I mean the longer your family spends with me, the more likely they are to realise that I'm an asshole!"_ _

__Kate falters. Her mouth snaps shut, teeth clicking together painfully. "…what?"_ _

__"In case you haven't noticed, Kate, I'm a raging bitch. You said it yourself, you're only getting my help with this because I'm a half-decent liar. But the longer I spend around your family, the more likely it becomes that they'll realise that your supposed 'date' is actually a _terrible human being._ " _ _

__Victoria's breathing heavily after her rant, and Kate's staring in shock._ _

__"…So, no, spending three hours alone in a car with your dad isn't really high on my list of wants and desires."_ _

__Kate doesn't know what to say._ _

__With some people, like Max, talking them through their self-deprecation is something Kate knows how to do. She's even getting used to it with Chloe when she needs it. But Victoria? How is she meant to react to Victoria reiterating all the worst, meanest thoughts Kate had dared to think about her in her darkest days?_ _

__"…I don't think of you that way."_ _

__Victoria snorts, her eyes refocused on her phone like the conversation never took place. "Yeah. That's because you're a better person than I am, Katie. But optimistic thinking doesn't change the facts."_ _

__Kate stares at her for a few moments more, but it quickly becomes apparently that the conversation is Over. Victoria's done talking._ _

__She sighs._ _

___From: You_  
Victoria has a car and said she'd be happier driving over, so you don't need to pick us up, thank you.  
Sent: 17:46 Tuesday 

___From: Dad_  
Gives her an easier escape route from us!  
Received: 17:51 Tuesday 

___From: You_  
I suppose so.  
Sent: 17:55 Tuesday 

___From: Dad_  
I promise we won't run her out of town. Any girl you love, we'll love.  
Received: 17:58 Tuesday 

__Love. Kate stares at the word, and then looks up at Victoria again._ _

__Right._ _

___ _ __ _

___From: You_  
Victoria, I can't do this.  
Sent: 01:12 Thursday 

__Why did I think this was a good idea?  
Sent: 01:12 Thursday_ _

__I'm lying to my parents. There's no way this is going to work.  
Sent: 01:13 Thursday_ _

__Maybe I should just call the whole thing off.  
Sent: 01:15 Thursday_ _

___From: Victoria_  
Katie  
Received: 01:15 Thursday 

__You are an unstoppable badass  
Received: 01:15 Thursday_ _

__You can do this  
Received: 01:15 Thursday_ _

__We're going to go to your childhood home and have an awesome time and they are going to be totally convinced that I'm your loving girlfriend  
Received: 01:16 Thursday_ _

__And you are going to GET SOME SLEEP and let me rest  
Received: 01:17 Thursday_ _

___From: You_  
…Okay. Sleep well, Victoria.  
Sent: 01:23 Thursday 

__…But what if I slip up?  
Sent: 01:29 Thursday_ _

___From: Victoria_  
FUCKING SLEEP, MARSH  
Received: 01:29 Thursday 

**Author's Note:**

>  _Do I write fanfics for fandoms when they're at their most active? No! Of course I don't! I sit on an idea for a fanfic for two years, then finally write it in a burst of creativity when I have no less than five other projects I should be working on. Then I sit on it for another six months._  
>    
> _So...here it is. The first chapter of my first Chasemarsh fic. I've actually had this first chapter written for...quite a while, at this point, but I wanted to have a clear idea of where the rest of the story would go before I published it._
> 
> _I want to thank my lovely beta reader and fiancée, Nanocytix, for helping me and for being encouraging and wonderful. And I want to offer a huge shoutout to Tiger_With_Spots for writing[To See (You) With Eyes Unclouded](https://archiveofourown.org/works/8699260/chapters/19944670), which is an enormous inspiration to me and is one of my favourite stories of all time._


End file.
